Howdy folks! For my 2,222nd post, I would like to share with you a little fictional story I've been working on. I actually got most of it done in January, but then school started and I got too busy. But now it is finished! For a long time I've wondered what it would be like if water warfare was a professional sport like baseball or football, and this is my humble vision. It's probably not very accurate, but I hope you enjoy it nevertheless. It is a pretty long read.

The Major League Water Warfare Championship Tournament!

Rules:-Best of 3 rounds: 1HS, CTF (unlimited flags), 1HK-Each round lasts 1 hour, except for 1HK which is unlimited-1HS: whichever team gets the most hits wins-CTF: whichever team captures the most flags wins-1HK: the team that eliminates all the opposing players wins-In the event of a tie game in either 1HS or CTF, tournament winner is determined by a 4th "sudden death" close-quarters 5v5 1HK game. Teams pick which players get to enter-In the event of a tie game in BOTH 1HS and CTF, the last 1HK round simply determines the winner-Each team has 15 players, but only 10 can be on the field at one time -A benched player may take the place of an eliminated or respawning player, but only after the eliminated/respawning player sits down-Each player wears an electronic vest that senses water to determine hits-Water balloons are automatically hits no matter where they connect; splatter counts if it triggers the vest-Players go back to the bench to respawn-Respawn time for both 1HS and CTF is 5 minutes-Only one flag can be captured at a time in CTF

The Teams:ARLINGTON SPIDERS (26-4)vs.TRI-CITY RAZORS (28-2)

Spiders Lineup:

Number: 1Name: James LivingstonAge: 31Height: 6'1"Weight: 195lbsPrimary weapon: H2O Performance FirebreatherShort bio: Has led the Spiders for six years; holds highest number of hits made by a captain in MLWW this season (68).

Number: 9Name: Devin FlaggAge: 29Height: 5'11"Weight: 185lbsPrimary weapon: H2O Performance FirebreatherShort bio: Once broke his arm while getting double-teamed, yet continued to play and eliminated both of his opponents.

Number: 16Name: Evan DesmondAge: 25Height: 6'2"Weight: 200lbsPrimary weapon: H2O Performance BlizzardShort bio: One of the two heavy gunners on the team, and one of MLWW's top defensive players.

Number: 99Name: Raphael KhanAge: 28Height: 5'7"Weight: 160lbsPrimary weapon: H2O Performance FirebreatherShort bio: Made it into the 100 hits per season club last season; ranked 4th best attacker in MLWW.

Number: 10Name: Victoria MasettiAge: 23Height: 5'5"Weight: 135lbsPrimary weapon: Z-Force F100Short bio: Went from her worst season last year to her best season this year.

Number: 12Name: Xavier LatsonAge: 42Height: 5'11"Weight: 205lbsPrimary weapon: Mavtech Labs Custom BlasterShort bio: Leader of the Razors; oldest active player in MLWW; more wins than any other captain in history.

Number: 50Name: Daryl TolbertAge: 29Height: 6'3"Weight: 240lbsPrimary weapon: Aquatech ABX-223 Heavy Duty + Aquatech CHP MK4Short bio: League record for most hits with a WBL in one season (36); doesn't talk much but gets the job done.

Number: 54Name: Chris EverettAge: 26Height: 6'1"Weight: 185lbsPrimary weapon: Z-Force FX3Short bio: Former pitcher for the New York Mets, thus often throws water balloons.

Number: 66Name: Ivan SkinnerAge: 35Height: 6'4"Weight: 200lbsPrimary weapon: AirSlicer P9000XLRShort bio: Currently the deadliest fighter in MLWW, scoring the most hits per season of any currently active player (2nd overall) at 122; described as cold and ruthless.

Roughly 1/4 mile between each base (colored squares). Green speckles indicate standard open-ish forest, while solid green is thick undergrowth such as knotweed. Light blue indicates water, and the creek is narrow enough to cross in nearly all areas. Dark gray indicates buildings, while light gray is boulders/rocky areas. Not shown are various barricades scattered throughout the field. Very little elevation change throughout. Cameras are placed in trees all over the field for live TV, and a blimp circles overhead to catch occasional birds-eye-view shots. Battlefield is surrounded by bleachers with large screens so that spectators can view the action.

Each base consists of a short wall of sandbags surrounding it, a tarp roof (no walls), and a place to put a flag for CTF. There is also a large supply of water. Just out of the battlefield limits behind each base are each team's headquarters; a large RV where teams reside during downtime. Outside the RV is the bench.

Blue square: Spiders baseRed square: Razors baseAlpha: Swampy area. Possible to pass through, but not quicklyFoxtrot: Large clearing. Grass is about waist height to the average warriorGolf: Old barn with several different rooms inside, as well as a second floor and a sniper's nest in the silo; point Golf also includes thick spot on east sideKilo: Wide and deep section of river that is not possible to cross without swimmingLima: Small bunker building with slits in the walls to fire throughOscar: Pile of boulders about 10' high, with several ways to climb upAll other points are simply various clumps of thick vegetation

Let the tournament begin!

*triumphant Fox Sports theme*

CHAD: Annnnnndddd welcome back to the 13th annual Major League Water Warfare Championship Tournament! I'm Chad McCarthy coming to live from the beautiful Virginia countryside with my good friend Aaron Skazynski, former member of the Miami Typhoons.

AARON: Good afternoon!

CHAD: So how about this matchup Aaron? The top teams in the league duking it out here in the championship. On one side you have the nearly unbeatable Razors; only two losses this whole season! Yet on the other side you have the Spiders, who essentially came out of nowhere this season, who are responsible for one of the Razors' two defeats. I think we're looking at a very exciting tournament here.

AARON: I agree Chad, and I'm looking forward to seeing how each team handles these battles. If you're the Spiders, you're really going to want to take the 1HS game and go on to sweep in CTF. The Spiders have always been strong in CTF, and I think we can expect to see Brooks do what he does best. However the Razors are a deadly force in straight-up combat. They have a lot of talent, and of course all the talk has been about Skinner wielding the new AirSlicer prototype. The Spiders are definitely going to have to watch out for him.

CHAD: Yes, I don't think there is a single person who follows the league who hasn't heard that. But on the subject of blasters, how about the arsenals of these two teams? You've got the Spiders, who are of course sponsored by H2O Performance, with nearly uniform weaponry throughout the team. Then you have the Razors, who have a little bit of everything basically. Several players are even bringing in Water Warriors blasters, which you don't see very often at this level anymore. They also have been known to use water balloons quite often.

AARON: I actually talked to Captian Xavier Latson a couple days prior, and he says that he always prefers to let players choose which blasters they feel most comfortable with instead of just giving them all weapons with the highest stats. Yes, the new Firebreather is excellent, but a lot of players prefer Z-Force blasters due to their light weight and ergonomics. I used an FX1 back in the day, and even though it was down on power to some of the others on the field, I was always very effective with it.

CHAD: Indeed. How do you think the weaponry matchups will affect things during battle?

AARON: I think we'll be looking at some very intense and exciting fights here. When team arsenals are mostly equivalent, which you see a lot at this level, things balance out and you see lower scoring and less action. Varation between teams results in differing strengths and weaknesses, leading to more intense fighting with lots of hits made. You've also got to take into account the different skill sets of each player. In this case we have two very offensively-oriented teams, which should also contribute to more exciting games.

CHAD: So I think it will definitely be a tournament worth watching. I personally can't wait. As we take a look down onto the field, we can see each team going over last-minute strategy in their respective bases.

AARON: Both captains have had exceptional careers up to this point. No doubt they've been planning things out for days ahead of time, and we'll see which team can make a better execution. Neither of them have fought on this battlefield before, so it should be very interesting to see what each team will do.

CHAD: Yes, this is the third season the league has used Larami Field for the championship, however it's been five years since Latson last led the Razors to victory. Back then they were still using Merriweather Park in Texas.

AARON: Larami Field is certainly one of the more tame battlegrounds in the league. It doesn't try to kill you with large drops like Tombstone Canyon, and it isn't massive like the Greene Flats. This field focuses a lot more on the players. It's not a battle against the environment, and that will definitely simplfy things for each team.

CHAD: And we will see just how things go down here on Larami Field in Virginia when we come back.

*COMMERCIAL*: Ask any water warrior what they need most out of a blaster...and they'll tell you...TOP PERFORMANCE! Come check out the all-new H2O Performance lineup, in select sporting goods stores now! Featuring the all-new Firebreather, clocked at a class-leading 96 FPS! H2O Performance. Proud sponsor of the Arlington Spiders.

CHAD: And welcome back.

ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, please rise and remove your hats, and welcome Whitney Peyton, who will be singing our National Anthem.*Anthem plays*

CHAD: And just listen to that crowd! They are pumped and ready for some good old-fashioned water warfare here on this beautiful day. And with only five minutes remaining until game time, it's no wonder.

ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen! We give you, the underdogs! Striking from out of nowhere, like the most feared of arachnids! We give you...the Arlington, SPIDERRRRRRS!

CHAD: And here we go, just one minute to go before the opening one-hit-scores round kicks off. Both teams are now in a huddle, getting that literal last-minute planning in.

AARON: Notice how calm Latson is at this moment. He's just sitting there with his arms crossed reminding everyone of their roles. That is the mark of a good leader, and it is no surprise given his experience and success on the field. It calms the whole team down, really. The Spiders are noticably more nervous, and might not be good for them unless they can put it all away once they start fighting.

CHAD: It is after all their first championship. Latson and the Razors have been there and done that, but the Spiders were barely a blip on the radar until this season.

AARON: Even if the Spiders don't win today, they have a lot of young talent and I wouldn't be surprised if they come back hard in the next few seasons.

ANNOUNCER: Round begins in five! Four! Three! Two! One! ZERO!

CHAD: And the crowd goes wild as each team takes off at a run! The Razors are heading for the barn, while the Spiders seem to be spreading out along the river. The Cramer brothers have split off and are heading along the north edge of the battlefield in the direction of the swamp, while the rest of the team heads toward the bushes at point Juliet, still spaced rather wide.

AARON: Both teams taking off at a run like that comes as no surprise, given how aggressive we've seen each of them play all season. They know what position they want, and they get there as fast as possible.

CHAD: And at the speed they're running, they are getting there very quickly. We'll see a good chunk of the Spiders disappear into the bushes at Juliet, with Livingston and the two heavy gunners going south to approach the pond at Kilo from a more open path. The Cramer brothers look like they are getting ready to cross the river. They are on the opposite side from point Foxtrot.

AARON: There are two schools of thought when it comes to heavy gunners. One says they should stay in a more stationary, preferably hidden location and take shots from there, while Livingston is going with the other approach and going with both of them in the open, where they can move better. I think that's the better choice, especially with bulky backpack blasters such as the Blizzards that they are wielding.

CHAD: Meanwhile we see the Razors start to occupy point Golf. Skinner will take Skeeves, Tolbert, and Masetti, and go into the barn itself. Latson takes up a position alone in the Golf bushes, while the rest of the team disappears into the massive Hotel section.

AARON: Teams like to affectionately refer to it as the "Hotel Larami". It is by far the thickest section in the park, but they only seem to be cutting through the northern half of it. My guess is, they're headed for point Lima to take the bunker and scout the enemy position.

CHAD: And in doing so they would see Livingston and the heavy gunners, almost like his bodyguards, because they are now at the lake's edge. The Cramer brothers have crossed the stream and are now crouched at the edge of the field at Foxtrot. Things should pick up any minute now...

AARON: The Razors seem to be settling into a defense. You've got Skinner, their best player posted up in the barn along with their heavy launcher. Latson in hiding, monitoring the east, and the rest of the team headed for the bunker. This is unusual for the Razors, but having lost to the Spiders before, it's understandable why they would take this approach.

CHAD: The Spiders are moving forward slowly but steadily at this point. The Cramer brothers are circling around the field, predicting that the enemy has a watch in the barn.

AARON: You don't have a clear line of sight from the barn to the field, but it is definitely possible, especially from the silo, where Tolbert has posted up with his heavy launcher. At maximum pressure the Heavy Duty version of the ABX-223 has been measured to hit almost a thousand feet in favorable wind conditions. You definitely do not want to catch Tolbert's eye!

CHAD: I agree with you there! And now we see that Livingston and his uh, bodyguards have crossed the stream just below the pond and are advancing upon point Lima! A risky move, but fortunately the other team hasn't...OH WAIT, THERE THEY ARE! Shortt dashes out of Hotel followed by Clemson, Edwards, Rogers, and Takashi! The first shots of the game are fired! We see dual blasts from the Blizzards, but none of them connect! Shortt makes it into the bunker and the rest of the team spread out!

AARON: Livingston needs to get the heck out of there right now if he wants to avoid getting hit!

CHAD: And he does indeed retreat! He jumps over the creek as the heavy gunners hold back the opposition. And OH! Rogers takes a shot with his launcher and GETS SANCHEZ ON THE LEG! First casualty of the game! Desmond makes it over without getting hit as Livingston pours on the cover fire. However it's a four-on-two situation now, Shortt's still in the bunker, and here comes the rush!

AARON: Now is the time for those hiding in Juliet to bust out.

CHAD: Takashi leads the rush at full speed ahead, and leaps over the river!

AARON: They would really like to take advantage of this opportunity and take Livingston out of the game.

CHAD: Livingston and Desmond retreat towards Juliet, and here comes the hidden Spiders force! Flagg, Brooks, Villa, Jackson, and Khan finally come out of hiding and engage! It's an intense firefight, and now the Razor squad is outnumbered four to seven! Livingston and Takashi square off in the center. It's Firebreather versus Firebreather!

AARON: Takashi is amazing but Livingston is a fighting captian, and he's got experience on his side. It doesn't look good for the rest of the Razors in this squad either!

CHAD: But instead of retreating, they bring Shortt over from out of the bunker! Now the Razors are only down two heads, but it's still not looking good. And OH! OH MY GOODNESS! Villa drives Clemson toward the newly-arrived Shortt, leaving them both isolated on their right flank, she gets walloped by a close range blast from Clemson's Hammer,

AARON: Ouch...

CHAD: BUT JACKSON LETS LOOSE A BARRAGE OF BALLOONS FROM THE MAULER AND GETS SHORTT AND CLEMSON AT THE SAME TIME! Score is now tied two-two! I cannot believe it!

AARON: That is only the third double kill I've ever witnessed as both a player and a commentator!

CHAD: The Razors are down to three now! They finally give up and fall back! WOW, how about that Aaron?

AARON: That was a very risky and well coordinated move by Villa and Jackson there. Trying to push back a heavy gunner nearly always ends up badly, but she managed to do it enough so that Jackson could take advantage of his short-range cluster launcher and get both opponents at the same time. Shortt had just arrived to the skirmish and wasn't in position yet, so everything worked in the Spiders' favor.

CHAD: Now back at the barn, the Cramers have been spotted! They seem to be caught in a standoff; the enemy does not want to leave the barn, and the brothers cannot hope to attack it on their own.

AARON: However we see Kyle saying something into his headset, and so is Livingston, so we can bet that reinforcements are on the way.

CHAD: Sanchez and Villa are now on the bench, and we see Charlie Damion and Brian Wu come onto the field for the first time. They will definitely be planning an assault on the barn. The question is whether or not they'll be able to pull it off.

AARON: The barn is a good position, but obviously it wasn't designed by the field crew to be invincible. There are many ways in, and plenty of cover for those both attacking and defending.

CHAD: And now we see the remaining eight Spiders cross the stream NORTH of the pond at Kilo this time. They are heading right for the bush that Latson is still in!

AARON: This is huge, because if the Spiders send troops into the Golf bush, Latson could possibly pick up multiple kills. However once they find him it'll be over rather quickly, and he'd be off the field for the time being. Latson isn't as much of a fighting captain as Livingston is, but he can't do much from off the field aside from talking through his headset. If I were him, I would try to switch with another player in the barn.

CHAD: The Cramer brothers start to press forward! They look like they're going to- WHOA! TOLBERT TAKES A SHOT AND...misses Allen by about two feet! Holy moly does that launcher pack a punch! You can hear it all the way from over here in the booth. Sounds a bit like a rifle.

AARON: Yes, Allen Cramer really had to move to get out of the way of that. He had less than a second! Kyle is known for having great reflexes, which is why Tolbert didn't aim for him, but it looks like his little brother can really move too.

CHAD: And we do see Latson come out of the bush at last and switch with...Skinner!

AARON: Ha ha, oh boy. The Spiders better be on their toes. Now we'll get to see what happens when you send the best player in the league with the most powerful blaster ever made against eight enemy players.

CHAD: And the eight still continue to press forward, and are now fanning out. Looks like they are going to attempt to surround the barn. Damion and Brooks are headed right for the bush at Golf! Right into Skinner's jaws! The sharp-eyed Damion jumps back! He's seen the trap! BUT IT'S TOO LATE! Skinner just took a shot and got him easily from ninety feet away!

AARON: I don't think ANYONE could have prepared for that! I have never seen a stream of water move that fast!

CHAD: Skinner emerges from the bushes to take on Brooks! The latter is known for his dodging ability but can he possibly outspeed the AirSlicer? Brooks is taking shots but he's not close enough to land the hit. SKINNER FIRES, and Brooks gets by with minor droplets but a SECOND SHOT TAKES HIM OUT! It's four-two!

AARON: We see the rest of the Spiders have now surrounded the building, but they need to take advantage of Skinner being the only enemy not in the barn, and take him out. He has caused way too much damage already!

CHAD: But they continue to press the attack on the barn! Shots are flying now, and the Cramer brothers manage to duck in under cover fire!

AARON: That's some smart stream managment right there by Flagg to help them get in, and now the defense has to worry about threats from the inside as well as out, but oh! Flagg was hit in the process!

CHAD: WHOA! Things are not looking good for the Spiders! That was Skeeves who got the hit on Flagg from the second floor. The Razors are still outnumbered five to seven, but that hasn't been a problem so far!

AARON: Indeed, but now that the Cramers have made it into the barn, the Razors are going to have a tougher time defending.

CHAD: We see the brothers are now in the main room and are squaring off with Latson and Masetti! Meanwhile on the outside Skinner is taking on Khan and Desmond at the same time, and Tolbert is keeping the rest of the Spiders at bay with his launcher.

AARON: Nobody wants to get too close to that thing!

CHAD: Skeeves now goes downstairs to aid in the fight against the Cramer brothers! It's a two-on-three inside the barn while Skinner is still being double-teamed outside. But now the rest of the Spiders take advantage of Skeeves' absence to storm the barn! Livingston rushes with Jackson and Wu, but TOLBERT FIRES AGAIN!

AARON: Oooh, lucky break for Jackson!

CHAD: The balloon hits a branch and explodes fifty feet away! The three Spiders enter through a window on the northeastern side of the building, right into the indoor battle!

AARON: And it's obvious why Tolbert was aiming for Jackson; that Mauler is going to be brutal in close-quarters! Unfortunately for him he wasn't able to get the hit and now Jackson is going to be a serious threat to the Razors here.

CHAD: We see Tolbert draw his blaster and head downstairs to aid! Meanwhile Skinner is still locked in with Khan and Desmond in the narrow gap between Golf and Hotel!

AARON: All three of them are very dangerous on the field, so it makes sense that they'd try to take each other out, but what often happens in these situations is that they'll cancel each other out.

CHAD: The Razors look to be in trouble now, but here come reinforcements! Takashi, Rogers, and Edwards, plus Chris Everett and Carlos Cabrera, filling in for Shortt and Clemson!

AARON: The Spiders need to act quickly to secure the barn and defend against the new threat.

CHAD: And we might be seeing that now, as Jackson GETS THE HIT ON MASETTI! Almost got Latson as well!

AARON: There's just no dodging the Mauler from that close up, but now the reinforcements are surrounding the barn! Khan and Desmond have seen them and are yelling into their headsets, but it might be too late!

CHAD: We see the five Razors rush the building! This is going to be intense! Livingston knows they're coming! And IT'S A BREAKOUT RUSH! Every Spider in the building busts out and attacks the newcomers! Khan and Desmond fall back to join them! Skinner in pursuit! Rogers fires his launcher but misses and now HE'S HIT by Livingston! SKINNER GETS DESMOND! EDWARDS HITS ALLEN CRAMER! OH MY GOODNESS!

AARON: The Spiders have retreated to Foxtrot! But they won't want to stay there long because here comes Tolbert with his launcher! The Spiders don't have a long-range launcher so they'll want to get out of there as soon as possible!

CHAD: It's a hot pursuit over the field at Foxtrot! TOLBERT FIRES AND MAKES THE LONG-RANGE HIT ON KHAN! The score is now eight to four in the Razors' favor!

AARON: That was a lucky shot! Now it looks like the Razors have called off the pursuit and are heading back to the barn to regroup.

CHAD: The Spiders head to the river near point Echo. They've only got four heads now, so they're probably going to head back toward their base and pull themselves together.

AARON: That was some very intense fighting. We'd always say that the "dam burst", in such situations. Players are locked in and offense-defense situation, then something happens to stir things up, and it's like an avalanche from there. I'm a little surprised that the Razors didn't continue the pursuit, but I guess they felt that they did enough damage.

CHAD: And now we see Jose Sanchez and Ashley Villa come back onto the field, along with Kevin Pirocco, Sabrina Imran, and Evan Rockwell, all making their first appearances. Everyone else is still respawning. Damion and Brooks will come back in in about a minute, so we'll see who gets the nod.

AARON: Meanwhile it looks like the Razors will call in Anthony Pagano and bring back Justin Clemson to replace Masetti and Rogers. They're huddling at the barn right now. I'm guessing they will go for a mobile defense now that they're ahead.

CHAD: And it looks like Brooks will be Livingston's choice to take up the final slot, and that completes the roster for both teams.

AARON: The Spiders are going over strategy at the moment, and as we head into the final half of this round, they are going to have to take roles of hunters here. It's unfortuanate that Khan is still respawning because he would be a big help here.

CHAD: And now both teams break the huddle and head out. The Razors head south and into the Hotel bushes! The Spiders look to be heading back towards the barn. As you said Aaron, they need to go after the enemy at all costs.

AARON: Yes, the Razors now hold all the cards. They do not have to press engagement, and are free to try and evade the enemy assault. Much easier to do than attack.

CHAD: And now the Spiders have reached the barn, and are clearing it out. I think they realize now that the enemy has hightailed it.

AARON: And now they're going to split up to cover as much area as possible. If just one person finds the enemy they can report it to the whole team. Much easier than in my early days when we didn't have headsets!

CHAD: So now all the Spiders will head out in different directions. The Razors are all inside the Hotel undergrowth, and it looks like Sanchez, Kyle Cramer, and Pirocco are heading in that direction. We'll see who finds them first!

AARON: We can see the Razors on this camera here. I believe it is located somewhere just south of the center, so Cramer will be the first one to reach them if he continues his path. We've seen a lot of defensive plays from the Razors this game, which is unusual for them.

CHAD: And now it looks like the Razors will move south toward the creek. They may want to refill, although it would definitely be a risky move.

AARON: Definitely, and wouldn't make a whole lot of sense either, since they've done an excellent job managing their water so far, and haven't done a ton of shooting. They've also got plenty of bottles to go around.

CHAD: And Cramer does indeed get the sighting! I don't think anyone on the Razors can see him yet, and he has chosen to lay low, but I'm willing to bet the rest of the team is on the way.

AARON: That's the downside of having your whole team move as one unit. Even in thick foliage, it's pretty hard not to notice ten people moving, no matter how stealthy they are.

CHAD: But now it looks like the Razors are on the alert. I can't quite tell from up here but it looks like they may have heard something.

AARON: Right, and as we can see, Sanchez and Pirocco are closing in fast, and the rest of the team has just entered the foliage. They are actually spread out quite a bit; looks like they're going to try surrounding the enemy. That shows real good coordination and battlefield knowledge right there. The whole team knows where the enemy is just by a descripition from one player.

CHAD: Yes, both teams have definitely put lots of work in scouting out this field. And now the Razors have started to move toward the creek. The Spiders are incoming! They'll be there any second.

AARON: They are definitely not taking it slow, which is obviously how the Razors can hear them coming.

CHAD: The Razors will reach the stream; they are now inbetween Hotel and Mike, but Brooks has also reached the stream farther down, and is coming up on them from along the bank. He's well hidden, they don't see him! Oh! But they have seen some other players! Cramer and Pirocco have taken shots!

AARON: The Razors aren't in the best position right now; I don't think they expected the enemy to reach them so fast, and now it looks like they're going to try crossing the river.

CHAD: Yes, Latson is already across. Now Sanchez appears! He's laying down some heavy fire with that Blizzard, and...AMBUSH!!! BROOKS PULLS OFF AN AMBUSH AND GETS TOLBERT! THIS IS HUGE!

AARON: He's trying to follow it up and get some more hits but he's in the danger zone now!

AARON: It was a beautiful ambush and while the Razors were able to neutralize, losing Tolbert will be a big blow for them. Now they don't have any launchers on the field, at least until Rogers comes back.

CHAD: The rest of the Spiders have appeared, but the Razors have already made it across the creek, so now it's a battle over the water!

AARON: Both teams will bring out their long range weapons here. Desmond is out so now each team has one heavy cannon; Sanchez for the Spiders and Clemson for the Razors. But you can't forget Skinner! That AirSlicer doesn't have the mighty output and capacity typical of a heavy cannon, but I'd say it either equals or exceeds them in range! He just has to pick his targets carefully.

CHAD: And now we see some of the Razors bring out water balloons! Everett hurls one...but Sanchez SHOOTS IT OUT OF THE AIR, and almost gets Everett in the process! The Razors are starting to fall back into the foliage at point Mike! Jackson takes an angled shot with the Mauler but he's not close enough, and Skinner and Edwards are able to evade the storm of balloons!

AARON: That still wasn't the easiest thing in the world to dodge! Skinner and Edwards were lucky to have trees nearby.

CHAD: And now the Razors have disappeared into the undergrowth.

AARON: It would definitely not be wise to follow them, so now it looks like the Spiders are going to follow the creek in the direction of point Lima. Each team has nine heads now, and with the end of the game coming up soon I wouldn't expect them to try and refill the last slot.

CHAD: Well it looks like the Razors are heading back toward their base, while the Spiders head in the opposite direction.

AARON: Maybe I'm wrong then. The Razors may in fact be going back for another player. It actually does make sense, as they don't have any launchers and they need to stall the clock as well. I'd expect them to bring Rogers into the game.

CHAD: It looks like you're right. We can see Tolbert taking a seat and Brad Rogers get up and head towards his team. Meanwhile it doesn't look like the Spiders have called in anyone, and are now at point Lima.

AARON: They're sending troops out to look for the enemy, but they haven't realized that the Razors doubled back. We've only got fifteen minutes left on the clock, so if they don't find the Razors soon, they will have lost.

CHAD: And we see Rogers meet up with the rest of the Razors just north of point Delta. It looks like they are now headed in the direction of the barn again.

AARON: And I see Livingston talking frantically into his headset. I think he's realized what the Razors have done since his team cannot find them in the southeast corner.

CHAD: The Spiders are now moving toward the Razors' base, staying in the more open areas and not even bothering with the thick stuff.

AARON: At this rate they might just bump into each other one last time.

CHAD: The Razors approach point Golf and seem to be wary of the barn. The Spiders are coming in fast, but they're not quite there yet!

AARON: Neither team can see each other yet. It looks like the Razors are going to skirt around the barn and head north, but the Spiders are closing in from the east. Will they miss each other?

CHAD: NO THEY WON'T! Livingston just pointed! They're coming at the Razors full sprint! Will there be time to overturn the score!?AARON: At this point it's win or lose for the Spiders, so instead of taking the slow, stealthy approach, they're just going to attack head on. Even if they lose a few people they're still no worse off than they are now.

CHAD: And the Razors have spotted them! This is going to be an epic showdown!

AARON: The Razors form a spread defense! They do not want to risk any suicide rushes for double kills.

CHAD: Here come the Spiders! They go directly for the right flank! The streams start flying! There are a lot of big trees and barricades in this area, and we see each team take full advantage of them!

AARON: Good move by Livingston attacking the flank! They're concentrating their force and trying to pick off stragglers one-by-one!

CHAD: Some intense fighting here! We see Skeeves ROLL OVER A BARRICADE, trying to avoid getting hit by a massive wall of water from Sanchez's Blizzard, BUT HE STUMBLES, AND...SANCHEZ GOT HIM! Skeeves tries to pull off some acrobatics but loses to brute force!

AARON: There is just too much pressure on that one side! The Razors are pulling back and trying to keep the Spiders at bay with a broadside!

CHAD: The Razors RETREAT! Latson obviously did not like that position, and they are now on the run towards Foxtrot! Rogers sends a balloon flying back at Livingston but it goes wide! The Spiders are in hot pursuit, but there are only ten seconds left!

*siren goes off*

CHAD: And that's the game!!!

ANNOUNCER: Round one over! Final score: Razors, nine! Spiders, six!

AARON: A well fought game by both sides. Had the game gone on longer we might have seen it swing in favor of the Spiders, but you have to respect the Razors' fighting ability.

CHAD: And as we can see from the stats, Ivan Skinner is the obvious choice for the MVP of this match. His incredible fighting skills paired up with the brutal power of the AirSlicer make him one of, if not the most deadly threat on the field.

AARON: And on the Spiders' side, their go-to-guy has been Sean Jackson this whole match, scoring half of his team's hits. He has been a force on the field with that Mauler. While historically, teams have always gone with long range when it comes to launchers, I think these new close-range cluster launchers will start to have a bigger presence in the league going forward.

CHAD: Yes, and overall the battle was quite intense as expected. Next up we have CTF, and I think we can expect nothing less.

AARON: I'm actually quite interested as to how this will turn out. The Spiders have always been strong in CTF, and only lost one game this season I believe. But on the other hand the Razors have momentum. If they win this, they are the league champions. The Spiders must win this and then face the Razors in 1HK. Not an enviable task!

CHAD: And we will see just how things go down in CTF, after this message.

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CHAD: Welcome back! We are now fifteen minutes before round two begins. Each team is huddled at their respective bases at the moment. Aaron, how do you think this will turn out?

AARON: Well as we've said Chad, both teams are known for their aggression. In such cases you often see lots of captures early on, then when one team secures a safe lead, they will beef up their defenses and make it very hard for the losing team to come back. As we all know, this is where the Spiders excel, and it's the best chance for them to start turning this tournament around. I am very much looking forward to this game.

CHAD: And I think the crowd is too! You can hear their excitement as the round start time draws nearer. Here we see a bunch of diehard Spiders fans:*shows a group of yelling shirtless dudes with Spiders logos painted on their chests*

AARON: Ha ha ha. They are in no way discouraged by that first game.

CHAD: Yes they are still one hundred percent into this tournament, and now we'll see the starting lineups for each team.

CHAD: And it looks like the Razors will open with the same lineup as before.

ANNOUNCER: One minute countdown to round two...begin!

AARON: Yes, Damion and Imran coming in does make sense as they're both fast runners and have made several captures this season. I think they would've liked to have kept Flagg and Villa in for their fighting ability, but there's really nobody else to switch with, as they need heavy guns and launchers on defense, and the other potential attackers have better records. In a way it's actually a good problem to have. Both teams have a lot of talent throughout the entire lineup. Even if they lose players in the field, they've got strong benches to back them up, which is not something that a lot of teams have.

CHAD: That is a good point, and probably one of the main reasons they have made it this far. We've seen a couple instances this season where a team won't even call in a benched player, preferring to wait out the five minutes for their hit player to come back.

AARON: And that is not something you want to do in CTF, where numbers matter a lot more. For this game we are probably going to see most of the weight go towards the offense early on, as I've said. Number managment is going to be extremely important here, and is no doubt what each captain is going over as we speak.

CHAD: And now with ten seconds left before the start of round two, we see the Razors get into position. The Spiders are still huddling...only six seconds left...

CHAD: And they're off!! As expected both teams' offensive squads head toward the enemy base at nearly a sprint!

AARON: They're both looking to get the jump on the opponent. Whichever team scores a capture first can get back and attack the other team's offense.

CHAD: On the Razors' side we have Skinner heading the attack squad of Shortt, Masetti, Edwards, Skeeves, and Takashi! They are taking the southern route it would appear, while Latson stays behind with Clemson and both launchers.

AARON: Interesting decision to double up the launchers. Often if you have two of them on the team you'll send one out to attack, but here it looks like Latson is just trying to build up an intimidating defense and hopefully stall the enemy for as long as possible. Most players approach launchers very cautiously these days.

CHAD: And it looks like the Spiders will bring out Damion, Imran, Brooks, and Khan headed by Livingston. They seem to be heading toward the center of the field.

AARON: Not surprised that Livingston has gone out to attack, he's been doing it all season long. It's what he does. He hasn't made any captures but he's always been an excellent supporter and wreaks havoc on enemy defenses. Also interesting to see the five-five split here, leaving an extra person behind on D. I think they predicted that the Razors would come out strong, and want to balance things out a bit for their own defenders. Now both defenders will be outnumbered by one instead of two.

CHAD: And the Razors are moving quickly along the stream in between Hotel and Mike, while the Spiders have crossed over and are now east of point Golf. It looks like they will split their forces; Livingston and Damion go south of the barn, making a beeline for the enemy base, while Imran, Brooks, and Khan will go north of the barn.

AARON: They are probably going to attack from the north, using the thick stuff at Charlie for cover.

CHAD: Meanwhile the Razors reach the bunker at point Lima...Shortt is actually climbing on top of the bunker!

AARON: They're obviously looking for the enemy offense, but they'll be out of sight by now.

CHAD: And after a quick look through his binoculars, Shortt hops down and they'll proceed to cross the brook, and will begin the attack from the south.

AARON: It's really the only way to go here. The bushes at November are perfect for getting into position for a pincer attack. The northern/western path is much more open. And this is why we'll see the Spiders' defense focus primarily on November. The Cramer brothers have actually taken up positions in the thick stuff. You can't even see them right now, and that will be something that the Razors will have to watch out for.

CHAD: And over on the other side of the field, Livingston and Damion have been spotted by the Razors' defense. This looks to be a distraction maneuver, but it might be a little obvious.

AARON: Yes, the defense hasn't gone out to confront them. You've got both launcher users pretty much surrounding the flag, while Clemson and Latson patrol farther out. They definitely suspect an attack. The Spiders' only advantage here is that the enemy doesn't know if it'll come from Charlie or Delta.

CHAD: However they'll find out soon enough. The other three members of the Spiders' offense enters the undergrowth at Charlie. They'll wait for the signal from Livingston before popping out for sure.

AARON: The Spiders do have an advantage in that they've reached their target first. The Razors' offense is still moving in on November.

CHAD: And Livingston is saying something into his headset. We should see some action any second...AND HERE WE GO! Imran, Brooks, and Khan will bust out of the bushes and attack Clemson, but he's a little too far away! Clemson now trying to hold back the three of them at once! Latson charges over to help, but is attacked by Livingston and Damion! The captians duel it out, and the crowd goes crazy!

AARON: This is a matchup we haven't yet seen in this tournament, Livingston's a better fighter but Latson has a more powerful blaster! This should be interesting!

CHAD: The Spiders look to have the upper hand, but you can't discount the launchers, and WE'LL SEE A SHOT FROM ROGERS miss Brooks by a foot or two! KHAN CHARGES IN!

AARON: Rogers pulls out the Eradicator but it's no match for Khan's Firebreather!

CHAD: AND KHAN MAKES THE HIT! One launcher down! But OH! TOLBERT GETS THE REVENGE KILL AT CLOSE RANGE WITH HIS LAUNCHER! THAT'S GOING TO LEAVE A MARK!!!

CHAD: The rest of the Spiders close in! The battle is heating up! Tolbert will run away and try to reload another shot instead of joining the fight, and now the captains will rush each other! Livingston DODGES THE BLAST AND HITS LATSON! THE RAZORS' CAPTAIN IS DOWN!

AARON: Clemson is the only real threat left, but he's vastly outnumbered now!

CHAD: And Imran will rush him to get the hit, but SHE CAN'T DODGE THE WAVE OF WATER FROM THE HAMMER! It's a suicide rush, but it's just what the Spiders needed! Brooks will take the flag and head off with Livingston and Damion!

AARON: Excellent offensive play there, but Tolbert just reloaded and he's coming after them!

CHAD: He takes the shot at Brooks, but he's too far away! The shot lands on the ground two strides behind Brooks! If everything goes smoothly they'll have their first capture, but while that was going on, the Razors have brought the attack as well, and are locked in combat from out of the bushes! Kyle Cramer has just pulled off an ambush on Edwards, which is big for them but they still have to hold back Skinner! He isn't taking prisoners!

AARON: But now we see Tolbert yelling into his headset, meaning that the Razors offense knows of the flag capture. This might be difficult for the Spiders to pull off!

CHAD: The Spiders offense is taking the flag up north, they'll have been told the enemy's attacking from the south. At the Spiders' base things are really heating up. Skinner TAKES OUT DESMOND, and now one of the cannons is gone!

AARON: Desmond looks quite shocked at that! He returned fire but it's obvious from that that the AirSlicer is indeed outshooting the cannons by at least fifteen feet. That is insane! Skinner is an excellent shot as well.

CHAD: And Skinner tries to push in toward the flag but Jackson steps in with a couple shots from his side blaster! He's holding one of the DualStrike pistols in one hand with the Mauler in the other!

AARON: Jackson is one of the strongest players on the field, and can dual-wield pretty much anything that isn't a heavy cannon, and it works out well for him here. He's able to keep enemies from getting too close with his launcher, but can still suppress at longer range and only fire balloons when necessary.

CHAD: And he's able to hold Skinner back for the time being, which is an impressive feat! We'll see more shots traded between the offense and defense! Meanwhile the flag-bearers have crossed Foxtrot and are preparing to cross the stream!

AARON: Now here's where things get interesting. There is no concealment between the flag holder and the base. The Spiders' defense is going to have to work hard to hold back the attackers!

CHAD: But the Razors fall back! That can only mean one thing! Someone must've seen Livingston and crew.

AARON: Yes, they're falling back and heading northwest! They need to stop the flag at all costs!

CHAD: Livingston's squad has just crossed the stream and are running over! Their target is in sight, but here come the Razors! The Spiders defense charges from behind, but they might be too late! Skinner charges and TAKES OUT BROOKS! THE FLAG HAS BEEN DROPPED! Damion picks it up and tries to loop around! Livingston is the only thing between him and the enemy! WHAT IS THIS!?! LIVINGSTON SUICIDES INTO SKINNER! I CAN'T BELIEVE HE GOT THAT HIT! Now the Spiders' defense is here! IT'S A BLOODBATH!!! THE CRAMERS TAKE OUT TAKASHI! BUT SHORTT RUNS DOWN DAMION AND TAKES THE FLAG BACK! HE'S ON THE RUN!

AARON: The Spiders have to give up the flag! There's no catching Shortt now!

CHAD: The remaining Razors are still locked in combat with the defense, but it's only Masetti and Skeeves against Sanchez, Jackson, and the Cramers!

AARON: They probably figure they've got nothing to lose at this point.

CHAD: And the Cramers will engage Masetti and Skeeves, while Sanchez and Jackson finish them off! Sanchez hoses down Masetti and Jackson comes in close for a Mauler blast into Skeeves!

AARON: Now the Spiders can breath for a bit and get resituated, but you can bet that they're disappointed in not getting that flag. But it's time to regroup and try a different approach.

CHAD: Yes, and we'll see the benched players make their first appearances from both sides. The Spiders will bring in Flagg, Wu, Pirocco, Villa, and Rockwell from the bench, and we'll see Khan respawn in, as he was the first one to get hit. Over on the Razors side, Cabrera, Pagano, O'Shaye, and Everett come in, as well as Tara Willard making her first appearance in this tournament. We've also got Rogers, Latson, and Clemson respawning.

AARON: Now this should be interesting. Livingston is still out, so the Spiders will have to try and function without him for this next attack. No doubt they've gone over the different assault options, but Livingston is definitely someone you want on your side while on offense. On the other hand, he removed Skinner from the field, which certainly is not a bad thing if you're the Spiders.

CHAD: Yes, nobody wants to have to deal with Skinner in combat. Now it looks like the Spiders will send forth another attack team. They're bringing out six this time, it looks like the Cramers, Flagg, Wu, Villa, and Khan will head out, leaving behind Pirocco, Rockwell, Sanchez with the cannon, and Jackson with the launcher.

AARON: They want to strike fast and hard in the hopes that their opponent will still be recovering, but that may not be the case as the Razors look like they've already assembled a strike squad and are moving out.

CHAD: Yes, we'll see Shortt, Cabrera, Pagano, Everett, Willard, and Rogers with his launcher head out on offense.

AARON: Both sides seem to be heading directly for the center of the battlefield. I think they're both trying to just launch the attack as fast as possible before the other team completely recovers. Usually how these attacks work is, the offense reaches the enemy base while they're still planning, and waits for the enemy to send out their offense before attacking. That way they have a chance at the flag and can get back in time to boost their own defenses and keep the enemy at bay. Unfortunately both teams had the same thing in mind, and it looks like both attack squads may meet in the middle!

CHAD: It certainly appears that way, as the Razors pass south of point Golf and the Spiders just pass the bushes at Juliet and are looking to cross the stream... But here come the Razors! They should spot each other at any moment...AND THEY DO! The Razors hurry to try and catch the Spiders crossing the stream! We'll see Rogers take a water balloon shot, but it lands in the stream!

AARON: The splash from the balloon actually did make Allen Cramer jump back a bit. He can't risk getting water onto his vest.

CHAD: They engage! We see several shots fired, but what's this? Shortt ducks away into Hotel! The rest of the Razors stay put and are trading shots with the Spiders' offense, nobody is hit yet...BUT WAIT! PAGANO SUICIDES INTO KHAN! Pagano, the sixteen-year-old still in high school, rushes straight for one of the best fighters in the league and trades kills! There's no doubt that he meant to do that!

AARON: And I think I know why! The Razors want to get Skinner back on the field! The only way to do that is if someone is hit! However now the the Spiders can bring Livingston back as well.

CHAD: A very smart sacrifice play there, and taking out one of the Spiders' best players in the process is huge. Now they are trying to slow the battle down to give Skinner time to come out. We see Shortt on the move eastward through the bushes at Hotel. He's put on the ghillie suit, ladies and gentlemen!

AARON: No doubt he's going for the sneak attack, but he won't be able to do it alone.

CHAD: And the Razors still fight to keep the Spiders' offense in one place! They are at a standstill!

AARON: The Spiders need to come through and make kills. If they fall back, they only bring the Razors' offense closer to their base. The Razors are mainly trying to buy time, and are what we call 'aggressively defending'.

CHAD: Over at the Razors' bench, Pagano has just sat down, and Skinner will get up and hurry off. He looks to be heading along the south edge of the field.

AARON: Definitely looking to meet up with Shortt. Those two alone could threaten the Spiders' flag, even at a two-to-one disadvantage.

CHAD: We also indeed see Livingston rejoin the battle, and he'll go to aid the offense. Meanwhile the skirmish continues! Each fighter trying to use the trees to their advantage.

AARON: Unfortunately the area that they're in is fairly open, so it's difficult to just disappear.

CHAD: Rogers using that launcher well to keep the enemy at bay, but sooner or later one side is going to crack. Skinner makes his way along the stream in between Hotel and Mike, heading for the southern attack route as before. Shortt is waiting by Lima, and they will meet up very soon.

AARON: Livingston is making his way to the front line, but he might be too late! Rogers has reloaded and is pressing the Spiders' flank! I think a momentum shift is imminent!

CHAD: You're right! Rogers drives Flagg out from his cover, AND HE'S HIT BY CABRERA! HERE COMES THE AVALANCHE!

AARON: Rogers making great use of launcher intimidation! He still hasn't fired yet either!

CHAD: BUT HE DOES NOW AND BLINDSIDES VILLA FOR THE HIT! The Spiders are in trouble now!

AARON: And now the Spiders see that they can't stay there! They retreat! They're going to want to keep the Razor's offense occupied until reinforcements come in.

CHAD: Meanwhile Skinner and Shortt have met up and are making their way through November! The Spiders' flag is in peril!

AARON: Yes, but Livingston has rejoined the offensive team. Perhaps he can help hold back the Razors!

CHAD: But the Razors' offense has shifted from the pursuit and are now crossing the stream!

AARON: Livingston leads the team after them! He sees an opportunity to catch them crossing!

CHAD: Everett is the only one who hasn't crossed yet. He goes for it...BUT HE'S TOO LATE! Livingston catches up and takes him out! But Rogers has already reloaded and takes aim! The Spiders fall back!

AARON: Now it looks like Livingston is having a quick discussion with his teammates. I'm guessing he'll either want to go after the enemy offense, or attack the base for the flag.

CHAD: And it looks like they choose to attack the Razors' base!

AARON: This might not be the best idea, but nobody on the Spiders knows of the Skinner and Shortt lurking in the bushes not a hundred feet away. However we will see some reinforcements from the benched players spawning in.

CHAD: It looks like Desmond and Khan will come back in for the Spiders. Khan runs out, but Desmond stays on defense.

AARON: Even Skinner will have a heck of a time breaching that defense. Both heavy cannons, the launcher, and two regular troops. I bet they suspect something.

CHAD: But Skinner and Shortt are within range. I think they're about to...YES! Skinner pops up and takes a shot! It missses Sanchez by inches! Now they'll gang up on Skinner, but Shortt remains hidden with his ghillie suit!

AARON: I'd like to see if Skinner can get out of this!

CHAD: He just might! Here comes the other half of the Razors' offense! Khan ran into them on his way out, but he couldn't react fast enough! He's out again!! Willard with the hit!

AARON: The defense will have their act cut out for them, but Khan will be able to switch with someone on the bench for extra help!

CHAD: BUT SKINNER RUNS FORWARD! HE TAKES OUT JACKSON AND DOUBLES UP WITH DESMOND!

AARON: The rest of the offense is putting the pressure on, and Shortt is still unnoticed!

CHAD: The entire Spiders defense is distracted! Shortt crawls out of the bushes towards the flag! But now Damion has rejoined the battle and spots him! They duel, but Shortt gets the upper hand! It's right back to the bench for Damion!

AARON: But now the game is up! Here comes Rockwell! Shortt grabs the flag, but can he get away?

CHAD: YES HE CAN!!! ROGERS HITS ROCKWELL WITH A WELL-AIMED BALLOON SHOT! THIS COULD BE A CAPTURE!

AARON: The Spiders' defense has collapsed! The remaining two defenders Sanchez and Pirocco try to chase down Shortt, but they are taken out from behind! Willard gets Sanchez, and Cabrera lands a hit on Pirocco! Now the Razors offense escorts Shortt back along the south side of the battlefield!

CHAD: Meanwhile the Spiders' offense has reached the Razors' base, but the defense is strong! Livingston, Wu, and the Cramers battle it out against Latson, Clemson, O'Shaye, and Tolbert, but Masetti and Edwards have spawned back in and have beefed up the defense!

AARON: This is an extremely difficult matchup for the Spiders, and I wouldn't be surprised if they call it off to regroup. As a matter of fact...yes, it looks like word got out of the flag capture and now Livingston will order a retreat!

AARON: The Razors will want to make absolutely sure that the flag makes it there. Right now Shortt is hidden in Hotel while his teammates follow him from the outside of the bushes looking for danger.

CHAD: And now the Spiders' offense is surrounded on all sides! Flagg, Imran, Brooks, and Villa have spawned in and are all rushing to the scene, but will they be in time?

AARON: I doubt they will. I think the Razors have got this one.

CHAD: The Spiders rush the flag escorters! Wu suicides into Willard!

AARON: But now they see that the flag isn't among them! It's over!

CHAD: THE DAM BREAKS! MASETTI POINT-BLANKS LIVINGSTON IN THE BACK!!! OH MY GOODNESS! She's hit by Kyle Cramer, but the Razors are routing them!! The Cramers try to escape into Hotel, but OH! THERE'S SHORTT!! HE TAKES OUT ALLEN COMPLETELY BY SURPRISE! Kyle is hit from behind by a balloon from Tolbert! Shortt makes it back to the base! First capture of the game goes to the Razors!!

AARON: A very well done capture by Fred Shortt! It came out of nowhere! I've always said that those experienced in scouting make for the best flag-capturers. He was able to use his stealth training to devastating effect here, although credit must be given to his teammates as well. And with only nineteen minutes left on the clock, we'll see if the Spiders can possibly make a comeback. At the very least, they can tie it and hope for the best in one-hit-kills.

CHAD: It looks like the remaining Spiders on the field will standby until the full team spawns in. We already have Khan, Jackson, Desmond, and Damion coming in. Rockwell and Sanchez follow.

AARON: The Razors have all shifted to the defensive. They're just going to have to hold out until the end of the match.

CHAD: We see Skeeves and Skinner come in as well. The Spiders are going to have their work cut out for them.

AARON: I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a power play here. They don't really have anything to lose at this point in the game.

CHAD: And that is indeed what will happen! The Spiders go on full offense! Not one player stays behind! Meanwhile the Razors have shifted into a defensive spread. Shortt and O'Shaye have found hiding places in the bushes.

AARON: It looks like we'll see an epic showdown between both sides! It's a shame Livingston's on the bench, as he's always done well in situations like this.

CHAD: The Spiders have reached the barn and have split their forces! We see Damion lead Flagg, Imran, Brooks, and Villa to attack from the north!

AARON: Looks like a stealth squad.

CHAD: While Khan leads Rockwell and the heavy firepower to attack head-on!

AARON: This is very similar to thier first attempt at the flag, which almost worked. This time they can bring all they've got, however they're also up against the best that the Razors got.

CHAD: Khan's team has been spotted. WHOA, Tolbert takes a long-range shot at Jackson but it's dodged!

AARON: That launcher never fails to impress me! I don't think anything on this field is less intimidating!

CHAD: AND NOW HERE COMES DAMION'S SQUAD! They bust out of the bushes yelling and screaming, but OH! They didn't see O'Shaye!! Imran is ambushed, but Flagg reacts fast and removes O'Shaye from the game!

AARON: The Spiders are coming in full-force, but I don't know if it will be enough!

CHAD: SANCHEZ WIPES OUT ROGERS AS HE TRIES TO RELOAD! BUT SKINNER TAKES REVENGE AND NOW SANCHEZ IS OUT!! Khan and Skinner are now dueling! Nobody has been able to hit Skinner one-on-one yet, but...YES!!! KHAN DID IT! SKINNER IS DOOOWWWWNNN!!!

AARON: I don't believe it! That little tree saved him!

CHAD: MORE HITS! Pagano is taken out by Flagg, and Villa nails Skeeves!! Masetti joins the fight from the bench!

AARON: The Razors can just keep spawning in, but the Spiders time is running out! They're down to six!

CHAD: AND WHAT'S THIS?!? SHORTT HAS GONE AFTER THE SPIDERS' FLAG! I DON'T BELIEVE IT! He disappeared from hiding and has just grabbed the flag! Nobody has noticed!

AARON: Wow, Shortt has put in work this match! He figures that if his team gets overrun, he can capture the flag and they'll still be ahead!

CHAD: And we continue to see action on the front lines! Khan rushes the flag, but he's NOT IN TIME! Clemson with the hit! Rockwell sees an opportunity...and WOAH! HE BLINDSIDES CLEMSON AND GETS TO THE FLAG! He's dueling it out with Latson, and IT'S A DOUBLE KILL!

AARON: There's an opening to the flag now!

CHAD: But Takashi has taken out Brooks! There are only three spiders left attacking, with only four minutes to go! AND HERE COMES SHORTT! THE SPIDERS HAVE SPOTTED HIM! THEY ARE IN PURSUIT!!!

AARON: And that should be the game! There's no way they can make a capture and get their flag back at the same time!

CHAD: Villa runs Shortt down, and...IT'S A SUICIDE RUSH! SHORTT HAS FINALLY BEEN TAKEN DOWN! Flagg picks up the flag-

AARON: Ha ha ha!

CHAD: ...Right! And he's off!! Desmond tries to hold back the Razors, but he's hopelessly outnumbered! He gets Rogers, but Takashi runs in for the kill! The game is over! Flagg will make it back to the base, and Livingston has organized a squad, but there are only thirty seconds left!

AARON: Now that's what I call a nail-biter! Both teams went in hard, but the Razors had some deadly weapons on their side. Shortt is incredible! He returned his team's flag, made the winning capture, and almost made another one at the end! He normally isn't known for capturing flags, although he's done it rather often, but you can bet the league knows it now!

*siren goes off*

CHAD: And that marks the end of the championship tournament! There will be no need for a third round because the Razors have won it all!!

ANNOUNCER: Round two over! Final score: Razors, one! Spiders, nothing! Now give it up for your MLWW league champions, the TRI-CITY RAZORS!!

CHAD: And we will continue with an interview with captain Xavier Latson, after this message.

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CHAD: And welcome back to Larami Field, where we are joined in the booth by none other than the winning captain, Xavier Latson! Welcome Xavier, it's good to have you. I must congratulate you on an exceptionally well-played tournament. Really well done.

XAVIER: Thanks man. I've been really optimistic about this team all year. I knew we were gonna do something special.

CHAD: Yes, you guys have been bringing your A game all year. For a while there it looked like you were going to be undefeated.

XAVIER: Not gonna lie, I was disappointed when we lost our first game. Nobody's ever gone undefeated before, and I really wanted this team to be the first.

CHAD: Yes, you can thank the Spiders for that. Tell me, how did you guys approach this tournament, knowing that your opponent was one of only two teams capable of stopping your dominance this season?

XAVIER: I think it was actually good in a way that they beat us, 'cause it caused us to really plan and train hard for this battle. We absolutely did not want to go down to them again, so we raised our game. Up against weaker opponents, a lot of teams get cocky and end up getting *bleep*ed because they didn't take the fight seriously enough.

CHAD: A lot of people bet on the Spiders taking CTF. How did you overcome the odds to acheive victory in that round?

XAVIER: One word: Freddy. Haha, that guy's crazy. The other night I went up to him and said "I want you to go after the flag in CTF," and he's like "Skipper, I ain't gonna go after the flag. I'm gonna GET the *bleep*in' flag!" And he did! Twice! Well, almost.

CHAD: Obviously you'll be giving him that role more often in the future. Speaking of the future, the word is that this is your last season. Is there any truth in that?

XAVIER: Hahaha, holy *bleep* do rumors fly around fast. As of now I'm gonna stick around for at least another year or two. Need to set things up so that the team will continue to do well without me. I love this team man, and even after I'm retired I'm still gonna help my successor to the best of my abilities. That's lookin' like Sam at the moment.

CHAD: Will you miss being on the field?

XAVIER: My mind will, but my body won't, hahaha. Man, I'm gettin' to old to be runnin' through the woods with water guns. I haven't had a positive K-D ratio in like ten games. I'm becoming a hazard, even with the fancy new toy Mavtech cooked up for me. Besides, I need to spend time with my wife and kids.

CHAD: Well thank you very much for your time Xavier. Congratulations again on the victory. Party hard tonight!

XAVIER: Oh I will. Thanks for having me.

CHAD: And that was captain Xavier Latson ladies and gentleman. Stay tuned for the highlight reel and an in-depth analysis of the tournament, sponsored by Aquatech Inc.

And that's where the average viewer would turn off the TV. :p Now for a little backstory. Way back in like 2011 I started writing a story called Water Warfare: 2035. It basically followed a professional water warrior as he fought in a brutal week-long 1HK game with hundreds of people from all around the world. They used very powerful nitrous-oxide-powered blasters with carbon fiber components, giant turbine cannons towed by tractors, and all-terrain armored vehicles. The enemy even had a superweapon in the form of an "H2O particle accelerator," which could level a patch of trees.

However that story ended up being way too long (it dwarfs this one), and I never found the motivation to finish it. I think I got up to the 4th day. But anyway the story that you just read is basically the successor to that mammoth undertaking. A lot of the guns and characters are based off those in WW '35, but obviously I got rid of all the crazy stuff my younger self came up with, toned down the guns a bit, and tried to make things more realistic. Also of course instead of a first-person narrative, you have this style with the commentators, which I don't know the name of, haha.

More notes: One of the reasons I chose Spiders for one of the team names was because I do not believe I have ever seen a professional sports team with that name. Although now that I think about it, Arlington Arachnids would've sounded much cooler. Oh well, too late now. Tri-City Razors was the name of the team that the protagonist in my old story led. And in case you were wondering, winners were determined by coin flip, haha.

Might write some other stories based in this universe in the future. Let me know if that's something you'd like to see!

It's fun to take a moment outside our own wars and relax into a fantasy world and read without knowing what is going to happen next.

You should draw out the fantasy blasters used in this story.

[quote=SEAL]AARON: Larami Field is certainly one of the more tame battlegrounds in the league. It doesn't try to kill you with large drops like Tombstone Canyon, and it isn't massive like the Greene Flats. This field focuses a lot more on the players. It's not a battle against the environment, and that will definitely simplfy things for each team.[/quote]

Pretty funny.

I also like the idea of the cameras on trees. Tony and Danny and I looked at trailcams at Cabelas this weekend. You can get a waterproof HD trailcam for about $75. It has a motion detecting range of 80 feet and will record HD video in 15 second clips. I'm not sure if it's worth it, but it could be, and at least it's fun to think about.

You also gave me an idea about sandbags. Would this be something you'd like to see implemented at MOAB? I could get some sandbags and we could possibly build a few bunkers.

Yeah, I agree. It might be a bit long for most people though. I'm glad that the Spiders didn't take CTF because then I would've had to have done a 1HK write-up, although that wouldn't take very long. I'll try to shorten the next story, whenever I get around to writing it. I have a few ideas.

I was actually going to draw pictures and give a stat sheet for each blaster in the story, but that would take a while. I might do it for one or two of them. I just have to attempt to make them accurate. These are very expensive pieces of sporting equipment that are literally designed for hardcore water wars, so any picture I draw would have to look the part. It might be more fun to just imagine what they look like too. I always picture a kind of futuristic black CPS 2000 for the standard primaries, and an under-arm design for the heavy cannons.

Haha, water warfare has a reputation for being the most dangerous professional sport in the world, with more injuries than any other. You know what they say, if you ain't bloody and muddy...

Trail cams would be cool, but I think the gun cams and Go Pros work for now. As for sandbags, if you can get them that would be dope. They don't really offer protection from water streams, but you can hide behind them in a field or some place with sparse cover.

So I just drew a very rough sketch of what I kinda sorta pictured the H2O Performance Firebreather to look like. Here you go:

Not to scale of course

H2OPerfFirebreather.png (8 KiB) Viewed 649 times

It's shown here in its unpainted state. A wide variety of colors are available, namely different types of camo patterns. It features a lightweight carbon fiber shell, a fiberglass reservoir, and aluminum for the pressure-rated components. The stream is motivated by a complex nitrous-oxide pressurization system that I will not go into. :p It is exceptionally powerful as you might expect, hitting a little over 90 feet in range, with about 45X output. And as advertised in their commercial, stream speed is 96 FPS, best in class. Special features include a fast-action trigger, ergonomic grips, and a quick-release reservoir cap that you pop open just by hitting the little tab. Only one pump is required for full power. The pressure gauge measures the nitro, and is also there for safety. You do NOT want to go up to the red mark. The size of the blaster is similar to a Monster X.

Most likely it wouldn't be feasible in the real world, but that's why it's a fantasy blaster, haha.

Some more information on weaponry for those who are curious: in this world there are three big water blaster companies that compete with one another. These three are Aquatech, H2O Performance, and Z-Force. Aquatech is known best for heavy stuff like cannons and launchers, although they compete in other segments as well. H2O Performance generally makes the best-performing standard blasters, although they are also more expensive. Z-Force guns are generally less powerful, but more ergonomic and user-friendly. Picture a CPS 1200 vs. a 2000, and that's basically the relationship Z-Force blasters have with those from H2O Perf. Aquatech's usually fall somewhere in the middle, although their heavy artillery is unmatched.

But in addition to the "Big Three", there are several smaller companies that provide more upmarket blasters. Mavtech Labs will create a completely custom blaster for you if you give them enough money. AirSlicers are simply stupidly powerful and expensive alternatives to the more mainstream blasters. There are other companies as well that weren't featured in the story; mainly either other exclusive brands, or cheap knock-offs.

Water Warriors from BBT also makes an appearance in this universe, however their market is primarily the high-school/youth leagues. Their blasters are generally less intense than what the other big companies make, but they're much cheaper and easier to use. Some of them can still be competitive against the best. And Hasbro? They're just some company that makes stylized hair dryers.

I think one of my favorite things about writing stories is getting to create your own world. More stories from this one will be coming eventually.

That actually looks really cool. You have some great design elements going on that I think would actually work with making a real shell. I'm not really sure if NOS would really work lol, but it's fun to think about.

Yeah, I wasn't a fan of it when I first drew it, 'cause it didn't quite match what was in my head, but now that I look at it again I have to say I'm quite proud of it. :p Really though, replace the nitrous canister with a carrying handle (which reminds me that I forgot to include one, as well as strap hooks) and you basically just have a more sinister-looking CPS 2000, haha. I made it that way on purpose, because I really like the "rifle" feel of the 2000/2500.

I've been thinking about how such a system would actually work. Right now I see the "PC" part of the gun having a piston like the Supercannon II, with water on one side and high-pressure NOS on the other. How to actually set up the internals is another story entirely...

If we're talking high end soakers (related to the topic), there's a lot to do before getting things like carbon fiber shells lol. I think we'd have modularity taken to an extreme end, using a lot of standard threads and components that are only specialized to the sport/hobby for miniaturization. Think check valves as small as the McMaster ones , but can also be disassembled for replacing gaskets/springs. This seems unlikely, considering that check valves for plumbing applications don't disassemble, but for something like a water blaster which has to be kept dry internally, it may be useful.

Swappable parts is an obvious one. Upgrade/swap out the stock pump for a higher diameter, higher volume pump! Unthread the old one, thread in the new one, and it's done. Goes right into the small check valve.

The reservoir is trickier, as it usually requires 2 connections and more specific positioning. However, standardizing its dimensions will take away from customization. I'd probably settle on those XP style twist-offs with much better locking mechanisms, larger capacities, and a reservoir cap on top.

PSI gauge is good, but the bladder's expansion level should always be visible to the user. (Ideally while also hidden away from other players.)

I'm not too fond of using HPA unless it can easily be swapped to hand pump mode. Still, if water wars became a professional sport, they'd find a way to make it boring as hell. (Just look at the history of paintball, which actually started in the woods.) HPA would be effective in a tiny field with a short and small game format. But in the woods where every lake is an infinite supply of ammo, it defeats one of the benefits of having it hand powered.

Launching liquids with precompressed gas is also very wasteful. Once a container is emptied, a ton of compressed gas just sits there and needs to be vented somewhere. It could then launch a water balloon, but that requires timing. Launching liquids requires very high volumes of HPA, so a small tank is unlikely to suffice.

I'd already almost forgotten about this, haha. I actually started writing another story set in this universe before school started, but I wasn't all that happy with how it was turning out, so I'm not sure if it'll get finished.

HBWW wrote:Still, if water wars became a professional sport, they'd find a way to make it boring as hell. (Just look at the history of paintball, which actually started in the woods.)

In real life, professional water wars would probably be very similar to paintball. Small fields with lots of cover. That wouldn't be the most boring way to play the game, but you couldn't really call it a military simulation then.

But since this is fiction, it's perfectly fine to fight in large, treacherous battlefields using stupidly powerful blasters with exotic technologies, haha. A real life high-end blaster would probably just be a more robust CPS blaster, at least with today's tech. I think we can all agree that CPS is currently the best pressurization method. But I wanted to make things interesting for my story, haha.

Swappable parts are good for if something breaks, but I'd think that a true sporting blaster would be completely optimized from the factory, and not need upgrades. That's how I envisioned it for my fictional universe as well. Mods are basically non-existent; the closest thing to it would be ordering custom blasters from certain high-end manufacturers. Same goes for homemades, although some people would still mess around in the garage for fun.

SEAL wrote:Swappable parts are good for if something breaks, but I'd think that a true sporting blaster would be completely optimized from the factory, and not need upgrades. That's how I envisioned it for my fictional universe as well. Mods are basically non-existent; the closest thing to it would be ordering custom blasters from certain high-end manufacturers. Same goes for homemades, although some people would still mess around in the garage for fun.

Don't forget the variations between individual preference; that's ultimately what modularity and modification is for. Someone may like a certain soaker platform for its handling, balance, looks, etc. but may need to switch out pressure chambers, pumps, and nozzles to fit specific roles. A lower powered pressure chamber should follow with a higher diameter pump in order to make the most of it (as the XP 150 demonstrates).

Even in something as homogeneous as paintball, you still have slight variations between things like air tank size. Also, regular maintenance is required for anything you use that has some kind of mechanical function. Rubber gaskets, skirt seals, and O-rings will always require replacement and disassembly is what serves that. It's a bit of a miracle that more CPS pull valves aren't failing than there are; that stuff is not made to last more than one or two years. In fact, paintball markers recommend disassembly for greasing every 2000 shots or so. This is the kind of maintenance that should be happening in nerf as well but isn't.

Fictional universe or not, we have many reasons for switching between the CPS variants in our wars, and I'd imagine there would be the same there as well. But instead of having to switch blasters, you could mix and match parts. For example, when moving to a large field OHS game to a small objective game with a water source very close by, someone might want to switch from using one large reservoir to several smaller ones. The small, detachable reservoirs could then be quickly swapped when respawning for a quick reload, then dunked into the source for quick refill. And this isn't even getting into what team combinations you could have where some people fill the role of a CPS 2000 while others are like CPS 1000's, but with a backpack supply and a high volume XP pump able to support and skirmish with lots of firepower. Or perhaps someone wants CPS 2000 level power and has the strength to use a high volume pump with it.

Being able to readily switch between those combinations of strengths and weaknesses would be much more effective.